Please ensure you read the full instructions on their website as this is just my perspective on what worked for me
I was so excited when I received my first two packs but also was worried that this was yet another gimmick to get me to waste my money, however I am always willing to try anything to make my life easier. I ordered two packs because from what I had read in the Light Therapy and MS group on Facebook, this meant I would have enough to do the Pyramid Protocol properly.
Taopatch gives you a link to their online directions so the first thing I did was to go and read the instructions in full. They've updated the instructions since then so I highly recommend you read their instructions in full. What I have noticed in the Facebook group is that some people don't seem to want to read things for themselves and just ask other people in the group. This is frustrating, if you are going to spend £200+ on Taopatches then you are going to want to get the best results, and if you want the best results then read the instructions!
WATER IS KEY!!!
It is vital that you drink at least 2.5 litres of water per day - I am not sure on the scientific reason for this and I am sure if you read their website in full you will find that information but it is critical for success. This should be water - tea/coffee/juice etc don't count it should be plain and simple water. Sounds like a lot right? Especially given many people with MS suffer with bladder issues and any women over the age of 40 like me, will understand urge incontinence! For me, I had actually started increasing my water consumption a couple of years ago when a bladder nurse told me that increasing water doesn't mean urinating more. I struggled to believe this but she was right.
It sounds like a lot of water?
The best thing to do is to buy a 800ml water bottle - I have a Sistema bottle from Amazon - I start my morning by first drinking a half-pint of water I then fill up my bottle. I have to drink that by lunchtime. I then fill it up again and have until 6pm, I then fill it up and drink as much as I can before bedtime. Please note that I am only 4ft 11ins so if I drink a little less it doesn't impact me. Breaking down the water consumption like this makes it so much easier to consume. Let's face it if you are at home most of the time you always know where the toilet is and yes I use it quite a bit but I would rather pee all day and get the benefits of Taopatch than not - so suck it up and get on with it as it's important.
What if I am going out for the day?
If I know I am going out somewhere I will plan my water consumption around it. So let's say I am going to be out of the house from 10am until 2pm. I just make sure I get up early (7ish) and drink as much of my morning water as I can - normally all of it. I always ensure I drink it all an hour before I leave the house so that I can ensure I have pee'd as much as I can before I leave. I then get to my destination and will most likely wee again as that's pretty much a given. Then I avoid drinking anything (unless I am sat somewhere with a toilet close by) until I get home. When I am home, I drink my afternoon water. If I got out in the evening, I will just try to consume as much as I can before I leave the house. If I stay anywhere, my water bottle comes with me so I can always track how much I've had.
Rebalancing Your System - this will be forever
Month One is all about getting your body used to wearing the patches. The first thing to do is to place 1 patch above your sternum and 1 patch on your C7 (neck). You then spend week 1 doing this for 4 hours per day, week 2 for 8 hours a day, week 3 for 16 hours a day (basically wear them whilst you are awake and take them off at night) and finally week 4 you start wearing them for 24 hours a day. Personally, I prefer to remove mine before taking a shower because that way I won't lose any down the plug hole and it helps stop the skin getting sore but you can keep them on.
photos taken from Taopatch website
Sternum
The first patch should be placed around 2cm from the tip of your sternum (this is where your rib cage ends) - lay down on your back and feel for the end of your rib cage - the centre point. Then go up 2cm (2 fingers) and this is where you place the patch. For me it sits just under the strap of my bra that goes across that area. I think some women have issues with this area and I believe there is a secondary area you can use instead of this placement - you would have to ask Taopatch - they are great at responding on the US Facebook page.
C7
This patch goes at the back of your neck. This is the part of your neck that sticks out the most when you bend your neck forward. You can look this up on the Internet if you need help finding it. Hopefully you have someone at home who can help you with sticking the patch at the back of your neck. If not, perhaps you have a chiropractor or osteopath that you use - mine has been very helpful in helping me place patches in the right place.
How do they stick to you?
Thankfully I don't seem to have an allergy to sticky tape but I know some people struggle with finding tape that works well for them. You will find lots of discussions about this in the Light Therapy Group - use the search function and read the information already there before asking the question. I use 3M Micropore - Taopatch sent me this with my order so I have a dispenser unit and then I just buy replacement tape. I replace my tape EVERY time I move a patch (not that I do that often) and every time I have a shower. This is because I found when the tape gets wet it's more likely to make my skin sore - and also because I don't want to lose one. I have never had an issue with the tape not sticking as long as I stick it on quickly and don't touch it.
Some people experience feeling a bit blurgh in the first few weeks, just stick with it - your body is adapting as I mentioned in my previous Taopatch post your brain has a lot to process so don't let it put you off. Don't remove your patches, stick with it you will see that with every few steps forward there will be a step back whilst your brain catches up. Also remember, we have MS, we reach our neural edge if we do too much and you may not recognise that you are doing more because you are feeling better. Taopatch recommend doing a video/diary. My life was too busy for that, but thanks to The MS Gym I am very aware of changes happening within me, so I know I have seen many successes with using the Taopatches and wouldn't be without them now.
The Pyramid - MS Protocol
To do this properly you need 5 patches - the idea is that you wear these 5 patches in a certain layout on your head for at least 45 minutes per day or more if you can. I am now trying to wear it as much as possible when I am at home. The idea is that you place the patches on your Crown Chakra with the centre patch being in line with the tips of your ears. Each patch should be around a thumb size away from each other. This protocol helps strengthen your neurological connections so help with your balance and focus. A face mask is ideal for sticking your patches to, I actually ended up purchasing more patches so I didn't have to keep removing them from my body. Because I saw the benefit of Taopatches early on, I had no issue spending more money on getting extra patches.
Month 2 - Increasing Your Cellular Activity
I am amazed how many people didn't realise this way part of the process. Month 2 is all about the Liver Detox - BE WARNED - the detox will make you feel rubbish! I felt really tired during this month and thirsty all the time. Don't give up when you feel awful just stick with it and carry - you have the Kidney Detox next and that's just as bad (sorry but set realistic expectations is key to success)
Image taken from Taopatch website
Week 9 and started my raising cellular further with detox of the kidneys. Last month was the liver detox and by week 3 I definitely noticed I was more tired than normal and thirstier (despite drinking 2.4litres a day). Today I felt more energised with the patches in the different places!
Month 3 - Increasing Cellular Activity Further
Without a doubt this was the hardest month - the Kidney Detox. During this month I suffered a lot with my stomach bloating which was really uncomfortable and I was utterly exhausted. It was definitely a long month but believe me when I say it will be worth it.
Now for the bad news - apparently we should do both the Liver & Kidney Detox at least twice a year. I am really not looking forward to doing them both again but needs must so that is something to look forward to in early 2021. Let's face it we are most likely going to be in lockdown again as people don't seem to get the message about not socialising, so I can be tired, bloated and miserable at home! Happy Days!
Image taken from Taopatch website
The good news is I felt epic after the detoxes were done and to be honest since then I have been feeling great. I've had a couple of down days when my brain was clearly processing all the changes going on but I have to say as awful as the detoxes make you feel they are absolutely worth it and if you want the best from the Taopatches then make sure you do them.
Week 13 - have to say I am so glad the kidney detox stage has ended, that was definitely challenging. I feel a million times better today and just had an awesome gym session with my personal trainer. Normally I take 80-90 mins to go through the schedule but today I did it in an hour. She was amazed. We decided to finish session then as she didn’t want to exhaust my body. My knee was so much more fluid, feels like it’s finally breaking through that wretched hyperextension that’s been there for about 4 years. She said my balance was fantastic, on movements where I usually wobble, there was nothing. Feeling great, thank you magic patches
Working out what works for you
So aside from the two patches on your Sternum and C7 - which should always be in place. You can play around with other areas on your body to help with things like foot drop, tightness, pain and other things. I did this a lot, I purchased the book I mentioned in my previous Taopatch post and tried lots of areas. Some of these things helped but I didn't really feel I got a massive benefit from having them in those places. The Taopatch website gives you advice for positioning for helping with foot drop but I didn't really get the 'wow' feeling in those spots. You need to play around and see what works for you but for me the thing that I have found amazing was when I trialled something new two weeks ago.
It dawned on me that I was seeing benefits from having the patch on my C7 so why not try the patches on other places along my spine. My MS mainly impacts my spinal cord so this makes sense to me. I spoke with my osteopath who has been there throughout my journey and we decided to play the patches on the following points:
L2 – Hip flexion
L3 – Knee extension
L4 – Ankle dorsiflexion
L5 – Great toe extension
One just above the coccyx
If you want to try this put your hands on either side of the top of your pelvic bones and work along to the spine that is your L4 so you can then work down to L5 or up to L3 and so on. Since then he has also placed one on T1 (fingers) and T4 (upper back). I purchased some PRO patches in early November so I now have about 14 patches in total so I can do this and still have my 5 left for my Pyramid protocol.
Since having the patches in these places I have felt amazing, I feel stronger, my posture is better than it already was from wearing the patches and things are definitely changing within my body. My right hand is weaker and I sometimes struggle with my fingers but they have been working well since last week when we added T1. It's early days with the patches in these places but to me it makes sense, this is where the nerve damage is so this is what we need to fix.
As much as I don't want to have a half-naked photo of me I think it's important for you to see - my husband places these on my back (they aren't quite straight in this photo but you have a 1cm radius so they don't have to be completely accurate and he blames it on me moving as he sticks them!) I have the PRO patches on my Hip Flexor and Ankle points as they are key for improving. I also use my 3rd PRO on C7 for Balance.
So this is my first 6 months - I started in early July. I am looking forward to seeing what happens as time goes on and especially after my next two detoxes to see if they push things even further. I long for the day when walking becomes easier but Rome wasn't built in a day and it took 5 years (perhaps even longer) for my body to get to where it is, that's going to take time to reverse. Be realistic and remember that. I posted this next image in the Light Therapy Group a while back as too many people were moaning about feeling worse and this for me sums it up.
Thought this might help put it into perspective for users - please stick with the journey and don't give up or remove patches when you are having a 'bad day or period' it is perfectly normal. Our brains have so much to process especially if all of a sudden your balance is improved, you are walking slightly better, you have more energy. These are BIG changes for our brains and it needs time to process everything. Keep with it and ride out the down periods as they won't last forever. Almost every two weeks I have a backward day or few days and then I am up again. My body is adapting and absorbing the changes from these magical patches
Key to Success
Set realistic goals - you are not going to put Taopatches on and start walking again. If you think that you are setting yourself up to fail before you have even started. Do the whole process - follow the instructions don't miss out a bit because it does matter everything is key. Don't just sit around waiting for things to happen, get on with your life - EXERCISE (this is really important, movement is so vital when you have MS - sit down too long and everything will be stiffer - sign up to The MS Gym or at least do the free stuff (see previous post) - the two work hand in hand. Nothing in life is free - you have to work for it.
Good luck and keep me posted on your progress or come say hi in the Light Therapy Group
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